Chapter I: The Sons of Tarchon and Aeneas
Part VIII: Latin-Celtic War
The sacking of Gabii raised alarm bells in the Latin cities. Like they had a century prior, the Latins put aside their differences and united behind Tusculum to defend against a foreign invasion. A fierce struggle erupted all across the region in 393(383 BCE), a result of a few years of planning and preparation from the Latin League. After a year of stalemate, where Lavinium changed hands no fewer than four times, Brennus was able to convince the Hercini, Aequi and Volsci into an alliance. The fierce historical opponents of the Latins, formerly a pastoral and unsettled society, had by this point settled down in the region and perceived the Latins as more pressing threats to their independence than the Senones. By 395, the war had escalated to engulf the whole region.
That same year, a Volscian army successfully took over Ardea through treachery. Volscian’s flooded the city during a Latin festival and overnight captured the citadel and evicted the garrison. Similar Latin losses followed when Brennus defeated a Latin army outside Lanuvium retaking the city for the third time in as many years. Another Latin army suffered a reverse at Praeneste at the hands of a join Celtic-Hernici-Aequi army. Only the city’s formidable walls kept it from falling at this time.
It was not until 396 that the Latins got their act together and began reversing their fortunes. Ardea was retaken in the spring, and the Volscian’s in the city slaughtered. Lanuvium and Lavinium changed hands once again, and a Volscian army was crushed at Norba. This was matched in the north with incredible successes. A Celtic army led by Brennus was dealt a bloody nose at Gabii, and a subsequent revolution in Rome threatened to undo all of Brennus’ gains.
The Romans rose up in the city, intent on expelling the Celtic garrison and returning it to Roman control. They managed to gain control of most of the city, but when the people failed to storm the Capitoline, the revolt quickly lost steam. A returning Celtic army hastily put down the rebellion in coordination with those trapped on the Capitoline. A subsequent fire on the Aventine prevented the Celts from enacting revenge on the Roman population, content to let the people tame the fire themselves.
This marked the high water mark of the Latin cause in the war. Brennus annihilated another Latin army and once again Lavinium and Lanuvium defected to him, agreeing to harsh tribute payment. This was soon followed by another disaster in 397 at the hands of a newcomer to the scene, the Marsi.
A fierce Osco-Latin hill tribe inhabiting the central Appenines, the Marsi were hitherto uninvolved in Latin affairs. This is the first time their existence was even acknowledged by our sources, yet they appeared on the scene not with a whimper, but with a magnificent bang. A Latin army led by the Tusculan Gaius Juventius had carelessly pursued the Hernici into the hills, over confidant and intent on catching and dealing them a decisive blow. The Romans had not been the only problem the Hernici had been facing however, and Marsian raids had picked up in frequency since the outbreak of war as they took advantage of the chaos. One such Marsian force was present in Hernici territory when they were alerted to the presence of the much more lucrative pickings of the Latin army.
A trap was set up in the hills, and Juventius led his men directly into it. A still confident Latin army marched aimlessly through the hills, as they tried in vain to search out the Hernici, who by now had dispersed into strategic hill forts to wait out the Latins until they left. Spread out in order to cover a wider area in their search efforts, the Latins were poorly prepared for what was to follow. As war cries droned over the hills, they soon recognized they had fallen right into an ambush. The Marsi descended on the Latins from all sides, easily isolating individual units and decimating them. A small pocket managed to break through and escape, but the rest were either slaughtered or surrendered. The dead were looted of everything the Marsi soldiers could carry, and it was laden down with plunder that they returned slowly to to their homes.
Marsi soldier
Following this crippling blow, the Latin cause lost steam. Tiburum fell at the hands of Brennus, its leaders forced to accept a Celtic garrison. A siege of Tusculum lasting until 399 ended in dramatic fashion with a coup by the demos (people) who overthrew the oligarchs and immediately agreed to a humiliating peace treaty that subjected Tusculum to Brennus and forced them to pay a devastating annual tribute. They were allowed independence only in governing themselves, and although a Celtic garrison was not installed, the mere threat of annihilation was assumed to be enough by Brennus to assure their compliance. He calculated there was more loot to be had through annual payments than through making an example out of the city.
This was followed up with the capitulation of Praeneste in 400. Numerous failed attempts to storm the fortress led Brennus to accept a modest tribute payment and termination of Praeneste’s involvement in the Latin League. By war’s end, the Senones had far exceeded their expectations of plunder when they first set out and accepted Velthur Hathisna’s offer to invade Latium. The terrorizing of Latium was proving a lucrative enterprise.
Part VIII: Latin-Celtic War
The sacking of Gabii raised alarm bells in the Latin cities. Like they had a century prior, the Latins put aside their differences and united behind Tusculum to defend against a foreign invasion. A fierce struggle erupted all across the region in 393(383 BCE), a result of a few years of planning and preparation from the Latin League. After a year of stalemate, where Lavinium changed hands no fewer than four times, Brennus was able to convince the Hercini, Aequi and Volsci into an alliance. The fierce historical opponents of the Latins, formerly a pastoral and unsettled society, had by this point settled down in the region and perceived the Latins as more pressing threats to their independence than the Senones. By 395, the war had escalated to engulf the whole region.
That same year, a Volscian army successfully took over Ardea through treachery. Volscian’s flooded the city during a Latin festival and overnight captured the citadel and evicted the garrison. Similar Latin losses followed when Brennus defeated a Latin army outside Lanuvium retaking the city for the third time in as many years. Another Latin army suffered a reverse at Praeneste at the hands of a join Celtic-Hernici-Aequi army. Only the city’s formidable walls kept it from falling at this time.
It was not until 396 that the Latins got their act together and began reversing their fortunes. Ardea was retaken in the spring, and the Volscian’s in the city slaughtered. Lanuvium and Lavinium changed hands once again, and a Volscian army was crushed at Norba. This was matched in the north with incredible successes. A Celtic army led by Brennus was dealt a bloody nose at Gabii, and a subsequent revolution in Rome threatened to undo all of Brennus’ gains.
The Romans rose up in the city, intent on expelling the Celtic garrison and returning it to Roman control. They managed to gain control of most of the city, but when the people failed to storm the Capitoline, the revolt quickly lost steam. A returning Celtic army hastily put down the rebellion in coordination with those trapped on the Capitoline. A subsequent fire on the Aventine prevented the Celts from enacting revenge on the Roman population, content to let the people tame the fire themselves.
This marked the high water mark of the Latin cause in the war. Brennus annihilated another Latin army and once again Lavinium and Lanuvium defected to him, agreeing to harsh tribute payment. This was soon followed by another disaster in 397 at the hands of a newcomer to the scene, the Marsi.
A fierce Osco-Latin hill tribe inhabiting the central Appenines, the Marsi were hitherto uninvolved in Latin affairs. This is the first time their existence was even acknowledged by our sources, yet they appeared on the scene not with a whimper, but with a magnificent bang. A Latin army led by the Tusculan Gaius Juventius had carelessly pursued the Hernici into the hills, over confidant and intent on catching and dealing them a decisive blow. The Romans had not been the only problem the Hernici had been facing however, and Marsian raids had picked up in frequency since the outbreak of war as they took advantage of the chaos. One such Marsian force was present in Hernici territory when they were alerted to the presence of the much more lucrative pickings of the Latin army.
A trap was set up in the hills, and Juventius led his men directly into it. A still confident Latin army marched aimlessly through the hills, as they tried in vain to search out the Hernici, who by now had dispersed into strategic hill forts to wait out the Latins until they left. Spread out in order to cover a wider area in their search efforts, the Latins were poorly prepared for what was to follow. As war cries droned over the hills, they soon recognized they had fallen right into an ambush. The Marsi descended on the Latins from all sides, easily isolating individual units and decimating them. A small pocket managed to break through and escape, but the rest were either slaughtered or surrendered. The dead were looted of everything the Marsi soldiers could carry, and it was laden down with plunder that they returned slowly to to their homes.
Marsi soldier
Following this crippling blow, the Latin cause lost steam. Tiburum fell at the hands of Brennus, its leaders forced to accept a Celtic garrison. A siege of Tusculum lasting until 399 ended in dramatic fashion with a coup by the demos (people) who overthrew the oligarchs and immediately agreed to a humiliating peace treaty that subjected Tusculum to Brennus and forced them to pay a devastating annual tribute. They were allowed independence only in governing themselves, and although a Celtic garrison was not installed, the mere threat of annihilation was assumed to be enough by Brennus to assure their compliance. He calculated there was more loot to be had through annual payments than through making an example out of the city.
This was followed up with the capitulation of Praeneste in 400. Numerous failed attempts to storm the fortress led Brennus to accept a modest tribute payment and termination of Praeneste’s involvement in the Latin League. By war’s end, the Senones had far exceeded their expectations of plunder when they first set out and accepted Velthur Hathisna’s offer to invade Latium. The terrorizing of Latium was proving a lucrative enterprise.
